Stories related to: Philadelphia Phillies

Tony Gwynn Jr.'s 10th-inning sacrifice fly scored Craig Counsell to give Milwaukee a 4-3 win at Wrigley. Kosuke Fukudome, the Cubs' big acquisition this winter, went 3-for-3, including a tying, three-run homer in the ninth off Eric Gagne, reports the Sun-Times . Meanwhile, Kerry Wood failed in his debut as Cubs'  closer, allowing three ninth-inning runs and spoiling Carlos Zambrano's scoreless outing. Elsewhere: More »

Once tough-as-nails former baseball star Lenny Dykstra is still as irrepressible as ever, and soon his characteristic voice will be reaching pro athletes across the nation—if they subscribe to his magazine. The Players Club offers personal and financial guidance to its readership, and will be "the world’s best magazine," Dykstra told the New Yorker. More »

Philadelphia Phillies’ Ryan Howard won big in his salary arbitration case today, getting $10 million instead of the $7 million his team had offered, the AP reports. The figure is the highest salary a player has scooped in an arbitration victory. “We negotiated right up to the courthouse steps,” said a Phillies official, but “we couldn’t get it done.” More »

A proposed trade of Orioles rising star and left-handed pitcher Erik Bedard still awaits the blessing of Peter Angelos, reports ESPN. Bedard, who won 13 for Baltimore last year, would go to Seattle for a package of prospects including outfielder Adam Jones. There are no guarantees, though, as Angelos is notorious for vetoing deals. In other hot stove news: More »

Mascots have danced, tumbled, and roused American sports fans for decades. Some have even gained a little prestige over the years. Forbes lists its Top 10: Phillie Phanatic. Around since '78, this green creature once scuffled with Tommy Lasorda and inspired an announcer to say that "baseball is being invaded by the Muppets." San Diego Chicken. The first modern mascot, he was fired by the Padres after (some say) he got too big for his feathers. He later sparked fans in other sports and became a mini-celeb in his own right. Mr. Met. This baseball-faced mascot has been soothing the pains of New York's "other" team for more than 40 years. More »

Jimmy Rollins, who helped fulfill his bold prediction of a playoff appearance for the long-suffering Phillies, squeaked by Colorado's Matt Holliday for the National League MVP award, reports MLB.com. At 353 voting points, his 17-point margin over the brawny Rockies slugger was the slimmest in 16 years. More »

The Phillies acquired former All-Star Brad Lidge along with utility man Eric Bruntlet from the Astros yesterday in exchange for Michael Bourn, reliever Geoff Geary and minor-league third baseman Mike Costanzo. More »

Pinch hitter Jeff Baker singled home the go-ahead run in Colorado's 2-1 victory over the Phillies, wrapping up a Rockies' sweep. The Rockies are now headed to the first National League Championship Series in the team's 14-year history, after a roller-coaster season that defied the odds, reports the Rocky Mountain News. More »

The rally towels vanished in Philly today as Colorado's Kaz Matsui clocked a grand slam and the Rockies won 10-5, staking a 2-0 series lead. Phillies starter Kyle Kendrick gave up 5 earned runs in 3 1/3 innings and left the bases loaded for Matsui's go-ahead dinger. Phillies' leader Jimmy Rollins made up for yesterday, accounting for 4 runs, including the Phils' first ever postseason leadoff homer. More »

The Mets pulled out of their five-game tailspin in a huge way yesterday, dismantling the Florida Marlins 13-0 on John Maine's near no-hitter as the benches cleared twice for a brawl. With the Phillies' loss to the Nationals, the Mets are again tied for first place in the Nation League East, reports the New York Times. More »

A 7-4 loss to the Florida Marlins last night was the Mets' fifth straight, and the red-hot Phillies continued to take advantage of the collapse, moving a game ahead of New York in the NL East with two to play. If the Mets don't rally now, their slide would be among the worst in baseball history, writes the New York Times. More »

Imagine for a moment that Mets, Phillies, Diamondbacks, Padres and Rockies all finished with the same record. That could mean ties in the NL East, West and wild-card, and four days of tie-breaker games to send two teams packing. In the East, Philly would host New York for a one-game playoff. From there, it gets complicated. More »

The Phillies lost 10-6 to the Braves last night, putting them two games behind the Mets for the National League East lead with 5 games remaining for both. The loss also dropped them to one game behind the Padres, who beat San Francisco 7-6, in the race for the National League wild card. More »

Jayson Werth hit a 3-run homer in the 7th and Jimmy Rollins knocked in the go-ahead run in the 8th to give the Phillies a 7-6 come-from-behind victory over the Nationals. That nudges them to within 1½ games of first place in the National League East.  More »

The Phillies' five-hour battle with the Cardinals burned through 20 pitchers—none of whom lasted more than 3 innings—before Philadelphia rallied to win their sixth straight game and shave the Mets' lead to 1 1/2 games in the NL East race. The teams tied a National League record by using 53 players, reports the Philadelphia Daily News. More »

Pedro struck out 9, but couldn't save his bullpen from blowing his lead into a Philly comeback victory. The Phils scored four times late to win 5-3 after trailing 3-1 until the 7th. They have beaten the Mets in seven straight encounters, and closed the gap in the National League East to 4½  games. More »

The Mets counted on closer Billy Wagner to pull off a crucial two-inning save last night, and he blew it. Wagner surrendered one run in the eighth inning and two in the ninth, the last on a Chase Utley single that won the game 11-0 for Philadelphia. The Phillies' key four-game sweep cut New York's lead to two games in the National League East. More »

The Mets had the chance last night to avoid their fourth loss in four days, with the tying run on third in the ninth inning. But then pinch-hitter Marlon Anderson slid off the base path and into Phillies second baseman Tadahito Iguchi, who was sent sprawling. Anderson was called out for interference as part of a game-ending double play. More »

Ryan Howard's 10th-inning walk-off homer handed Philadelphia a 4-2 win over the Mets last night, lifting the Phillies to within four games of New York in the National League East. Though a two-run shot from Carlos Delgado gave the Mets an early lead, clutch hits from Jimmy Rollins and Aaron Rowand set the stage for Howard's extra-inning fireworks. More »

Sloppy defense cost the Mets a loss in Pittsburgh last night. With two outs and the game tied in the eighth, New York's Freddy Sanchez erred on a routine grounder, and catcher Mike DiFelice bumbled a throw at the plate to hand the Pirates the lead. Pittsburgh scored two more runs against the disheartened Mets on their way to a 10-7 victory. More »